Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1887-01-07
TON OREO; OR, LITTLEBEE's MINE.
A Play by a Former Prospeetor and
Resident Of HALEY and Wood River.

A fley Dy y rOrmer TTOSpeetOE An0
Resident Of HALEY and Wood River.
Almost every one here remembers
Frank ]. Scott, who formerly lived in
this city, but is now living on an am
pie income in the city of Toledo,
Ohio. After seeing the world, Mr..
Scott concluded to try prospecting
for mines-more for the excitement
of the thing than for the profit
there might be in it-and came to
the Salmon river and Yankee Fork
country. In the summer Of 1879 he
was one of the first of band of
hardy prospectors to cross the Saw
tooth divide to where the city of Ga
lena now stands. He was in no hurry
to make locations, however, SO he
rode over the country from the Saw
tooth range to the Snake river, taking
notes and preliminary views for map
which he published the following
spring. In 1881 he located in Haley,
purchased the block of ground on the
northwest corner of Bullion street
and FRS, avenue, and employed his
time in supervising the work on the
Guy and other mines which he owns,
and in wooing the muses.. In the
fall of '83 he returned East and re-
NAMED away until last summer, when
he made flying trip to Wood River,
to see how we were getting along.
After looking about the country for
few weeks he went back to Ohio. Co.
Mr.. Scott being a gentleman of
abundant means, we scarcely hoped
to hear from him or see him again in
this outpost of the "wild and woolly"
West. 1t was therefore with genuine
pleasure that we, the other day, re-
ceived copy of new play written
by him, upon whose cover, appropri-
ately printed on silver-gilt paper, we
read the superscrlption: "T. E. Pi-
cote, Esq, with compliments OF the
author" 1t is dedicated "to Joseph
Jefferson, the Actor" and was writ
ten But perhaps we cannot do
better than to let him tell it himself.
in his
INTRODUCTION.
During the seasons of 80 to 'S3,
the writer was one of the pioneer ex-
plorers of part of the Sawtooth
range in Central Idaho, in constant
contact with mine prospectors in the
mountains, summers, and winters CO.
casionally meeting with mine brokers,
or "promoters," 10 New York. Some
of the contrasts in life and business
between these two extremes of soci-
ETY., impressed me as good material
for play; and although had no ex-
perence in this field of literature, the
desire to picture what was in my
mind became so strong that in the
summer of 1888, while at HALEY,
Idaho Territory, l wrote the following
play. Returning to the East in the
fall, I found the country was being
flooded with mass of new plays
mostly roaring comedies; and tina,
the taste for the latter seemed uni
versal. l concluded that this sober
child of mine would have little vel
come in the midst Of that hilarious
crowd. l therefore put the manu-
script away in a draw-to season
lQuite lately became curious, after
its three years storage, to read it. Al
the result, | have to confess to a
grave indiscretion. Though a mar.
ried man, and we'll along in years,
actually fell in love with Littlebee':
wife! A gush of affection also came
back tor Oreo, who proves such no
BILE fellow, that I cannot resist .
Q fatherly impulse to introduce him to
all my friends. Hence this print.
While Oreo and the rest of the
family were growing on my hands il
the fair valley of Wood River, nea
the peaks OF the rugged Sawtootl
mountains, there was one actor con
stantly associated with Oreo in m,
mind-and but one. Who could i
be but rare old Joseph jefferson? II
d thought l, if only Jefferson woul'
personate Oreo, the name might be
come distinguished. But when tn
play was done and could have bee
It sent to him, there came before m
the impression that Mr.. Jefferson
only plays the pieces he learned whe
younger, and would be bored by hav
ing his attention called to novice
new play when the world is fille'
with better old ones. | was hun
bled also to think that he might, o.
unrolling the manuscript to the ligh
cast one glance of agony upon it
numerous leaves, and then with a Joy
Gus smile of relief, consign it to tn
fire. So neither he ner any othe
actor has had an oppo tunity to te